Leadership and Management for Nurses, 3e (Finkelman)
Chapter 2 Healthcare Policy, Legal Issues, and Ethics in Healthcare Delivery
1) Which option represents a situation exemplifying the need for nurses to become involved in
healthcare policy development?
1. The nurse omitted documentation of a surgical dressing change.
2. The nurse must have a nursing license and be certified as APRN to prescribe medications.
3. The nurse administered oral medications to the patient in the home.
4. The nurse discussed do-not-resuscitate decisions with the patient and the family.
2) Which strategy could the nurse use to avoid disparity in healthcare delivery?
1. Recognize the cultural issue related to patient care.
2. Request more health plan options.
3. Care for more patients even if quality suffers.
4. Campaign for fixed nurse-patient ratios.
3) Which option best illustrates a positive outcome from managed care?
1. Reshaped current policy
2. Consumer involvement in the healthcare political process
3. Increase in quality care with reduced cost
4. Managed care is now the method used for reimbursement.
4) The nursing assistant left a side rail down upon exiting the room of a patient who had just
returned from the recovery room postoperatively. What does this scenario most closely
illustrate?
1. Personal injury
2. Criminal intent
3. Malpractice
4. Negligence
5) The risk manager is reviewing these events that occurred over the weekend. Which scenario
should the risk manager be most concerned would represent malpractice?
1. The nurse did not obtain an apical pulse on a patient prior to administering Digoxin 0.25 mg
orally.
2. The nurse did not raise the bed when changing the linens for a patient who was up in the chair.
3. A nurse did not obtain consent before drawing blood.
4. The nurse continued to assess the diabetic patient’s blood sugar before each meal.
6) Which scenario is an example of informed consent?
1. The nurse omits diabetic education for a patient who has had diabetes for 10 years.
2. The nurse applies restraints to a patient who is trying to remove the nasogastric tube.
3. The patient understands the surgical procedure that will occur in the morning.
4. The patient asks the nurse for pain medication.
7) On admission, the patient states, “My son can make healthcare decisions for me if it is
necessary.” What does this statement imply?
1. The patient has a living will.
2. The son has durable power of attorney.
3. This patient has violated the Patient Self-Determination Act.
4. The patient wishes a do-not-resuscitate status.
8) Which situation illustrates the ethical concept of autonomy?
1. The patient is instructed on the technique of insulin administration.
2. The patient is asked to choose from which arm to have blood drawn.
3. The patient’s information can be used for research purposes.
4. The patient is informed of privacy rights.
9) Which nursing action best illustrates the ethical concept of beneficence?
1. Providing a walker for a patient prior to ambulating in the hall
2. Allowing the patient to choose what time to have a shower
3. Asking the patient about the existence of a living will or durable power of attorney
4. Continually communicating with the patient regarding procedures
10) Which action, taken by the nurse, best illustrates the ethical concept of justice?
1. The nurse witnesses consent prior to a surgical procedure for a patient.
2. The nurse advises the patient to take slow, deep breaths to try to relax before a urinary catheter
is inserted.
3. The nurse provides discharge teaching to a postoperative patient and spends time with a
patient who is depressed.
4. The nurse works with a physician to solve a patient problem.
Learning Outcome: LO 10. Apply ethical decision making to management situations.
11) Which nursing action is the best example of the ethical principle of veracity?
1. Supporting the patient’s right to refuse any part of planned nursing care
2. Informing the patient that the pain medication to be given is not the same as what was
administered the previous day
3. Maintaining the privacy of the patient’s personal medical information
4. Supporting the patient when ambulating and instructing the patient on the use of a walker
12) Why does the process of developing public health policy seem familiar to most nurses?
1. It is very similar to the nursing process.
2. It is taught in all nursing schools.
3. It is emphasized on NCLEX-RN.
4. It reflects common sense.
13) Which statements correctly apply to the process of developing public policy? Select all that
apply.
1. The two types of public policy are regulatory and allocative.
2. Since public policy supports the general population, decisions regarding policy are typically
straightforward and easy to make.
3. Often, in order to pass a policy, deals have to be made.
4. Public policy may benefit some at the expense of others.
5. By law, political influence is separate from policy development.
political process.
14) Evaluate the following: The patient is labeled as a “complainer,” and has not been informed
of the treatment plan. The patient has no insurance, and the nursing staff is discussing the
situation in the hallway. Choose the principles that have been violated. Select all that apply.
1. Justice
2. Confidentiality
3. Veracity
4. Autonomy
5. Beneficence
15) What is different about today’s healthcare environment that makes it crucial that nurses are
involved in the development of healthcare policy? Select all that apply.
1. The focus of this new environment is on one-to-one nursing care.
2. There has been a shift from curing patients to prevention of illness.
3. Care must be cost-effective.
4. There is a need to reinvent nursing’s professional culture.
5. High quality care will again be provided primarily in acute care settings.
16) What was the American Nurses Association’s stance on the healthcare reform plan supported
by the Obama administration? Select all that apply.
1. This law is a significant victory for patients.
2. The debate over healthcare reform is finally over.
3. There is need to help nurses understand the significance of this law.
4. Access to primary care will be more difficult for most Americans.
5. There will be greater protection against being denied health insurance.